Is a preauricular pit a birth defect?

Is a preauricular pit a birth defect?

Preauricular pits are congenital. This means you’re born with one when your ear doesn’t fully develop before birth. It’s a common condition and is considered harmless. Your doctor might look for other irregularities if they notice your newborn baby has a pit.

How rare is it to have a preauricular pit?

It is also termed as preauricular pit, preauricular fistula, preauricular tract and preauricular cyst. It has an estimated incidence of 0.1–0.9% in the general population.

What causes preauricular pits?

Preauricular pits are congenital, meaning children are born with this malformation when ear development goes awry early in gestation. However, the malformation is not associated with hearing impairments, and only rarely associated with a genetic syndrome involving other problems.

How do you clean a preauricular pit?

How do you keep a preauricular pit clean? Preauricular pits that have no added complications can be cleaned in the same way as the rest of your body—with regular soap and water. No special attention to cleaning is necessary.

Are ear pits hereditary?

The pits may be inherited, which means that they can run in families. They may also be sporadic and occur for an unknown reason. If the condition affects both ears, it is more likely to be an inherited irregularity. The incidence of preauricular pits varies.

Are preauricular pits common?

A preauricular pit is a common birth irregularity first reported in 1864. Healthcare professionals tend to notice these pits during routine examinations of newborns. These pits may occur on one or both ears, and there may be more than one pit present. However, it is more common for there to be a pit in only one ear.

How is preauricular sinus treated?

Surgery under local anesthesia. Incomplete removal of the sinus tract. Active infection at the time of surgery. Drainage of an abscess prior to surgery.

Is preauricular sinus surgery painful?

A potential alternative to incision and drainage is the use of a blunt-ended lacrimal probe inserted into the preauricular pit in order to open the abscess cavity. However, acute inflammation usually makes this option technically difficult and painful.

How do you clean preauricular ear pits?

Can preauricular pits come back?

It presents a high risk of recurrence when treated by a standard surgical technique (simple sinectomy), the incidence of which is reported to be between 19% and 40%.